It's the final days of preparation for the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival and things are buzzing at the offices of Another Planet Entertainment, the independent Berkeley concert promotion company that produces the huge three-day concert in Golden Gate Park. With Phish, Muse and Arcade Fire topping a bill that boasts more than 70 acts spread across nearly a dozen stages, the organizers expect this year's event to be the biggest yet.

"First you book the festival, then you promote the festival, and then you actually have to produce the festival," says Gregg Perloff, as phones ring steadily in the background. "We are so busy."

Throw in a variety of new attractions, nearly twice as many local food vendors and a handful of after-hours shows and it's a miracle anyone in this office is getting any sleep. But as the festival enters its fourth year, the promoters feel as if they have finally hit their stride, especially in terms of the music. "We believe we have the best lineup in the world," Perloff says.

While the headliners are regular arena draws, things really get interesting farther down the bill, as sets jump between hip-hop, Britpop and dance-rock with everything in between via acts like the Arctic Monkeys, Deadmau5, the Roots, Girl Talk, the Vaccines, Erykah Badu and several local talents.

"What I love about the festival is if you go and ask anyone on the street who they want to see, they'll all give you different names - and it won't be the headliners." Perloff says.

"It's all about the discovery of music," says Allen Scott, who helped book many of the bands playing this year. "With the lack of the usual filters like radio and record companies, this is the best way for bands to get their music out there. Bands that would normally play for 2,800 people at the Fox Theatre will have 30,000 people in front of them."

After scaling the festival down to just two days last year because of a sluggish summer concert season, not only is it back to the original three-day run, but the organizers also have added the slew of off-site shows featuring bands such as Best Coast, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and STS9. "The idea is we're trying to immerse the audience in Outside Lands and the city," Scott says.

A significant portion of every ticket sold will once again directly benefit the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department. Meanwhile, the organizers estimate that nearly half of the people attending the festival are from outside of the Bay Area, boosting the local economy. "All the restaurants, bars and shops around the park tell us it's their biggest weekend of the year," Perloff says.

The Outside Lands promoters are determined to keep those who can't attend happy as well. While the rest of the audience is mostly made up of people who live in the three ZIP codes closest to the park, there will be additional Muni buses running to alleviate foot traffic after the concert. A paid shuttle service will offer round-trip rides between the park and downtown San Francisco to avoid parking hassles, and a community hotline will be available to field complaints during the festival.

The estimated 150,000 people who make it out to the festival over the weekend will have a pick of eats from Bay Area institutions such as Ti Couz, Memphis Minnie's, Asqew Grill, Woodhouse Fish Co. and Namu. Kara's Cupcakes, Philz Coffee and Three Twins Ice Cream will also be on hand.

Not enough? One of the new attractions this year will be McLaren Path (named for the late Golden Gate Park developer John McLaren), which cuts through Speedway Meadow to the Polo Field. Along the way, there will be a variety of boutique chocolate vendors and exclusive food trucks, New Orleans-style parades and the return of the Barbary Tent, which Scott promises will feature comedians, animal tricks and sword swallowers.

"The vast majority of people coming to the festival have purchased three-day tickets," he says. "It's those second and third days that they really begin to take in the elements." {sbox}